REU Mentors
Many (though not all) graduate students will do their PhD in the same domain where they did their REU.
REU Mentors - Summer 2024
Dr. Misty Bentz
Extragalactic Astronomy
Dr. Misty Bentz studies nearby galaxies that host actively accreting black holes in their centers. Her research focuses on measuring the masses of the black holes and constraining the properties of the host galaxies, primarily using optical and near-IR imaging and spectroscopy from a variety of ground- and space-based telescopes. Potential student projects could include time domain analysis of repeated imaging or spectroscopy, two-dimensional fitting of high-resolution galaxy images, or modeling of light curves to constrain unresolvable structures using light echoes.
Dr. Todd Henry
Stellar Astronomy
The RECONS group studies nearby stars and their environments, with a focus on the K and M dwarfs that are less massive than our Sun but make up 86% of all stars in the Milky Way. RECONS carries out research using SMARTS telescopes in Chile (as well as many others) that are used to observe stars via imaging and spectroscopy, providing deep datasets from which many projects can be derived. For Summer 2023, research projects would likely be focused on the companions to the K and M dwarfs — including other stars, brown dwarfs, and jovian planets — as well as the variability of the targeted stars.
Dr. Russel White
Stellar Astronomy
Dr. Russel White studies how stars form and how they change over their lifetime. He uses the observational techniques of spectroscopy and interferometry (with GSU’s CHARA Array) to measure star properties and constrain formation and evolution theories. By searching for gas giant planets around many of these same stars, he also investigates how and why some giant planets migrate and become ‘hot Jupiters’. A REU student that works with Dr. White would most likely analyze spectroscopic or interferometric observations of stars in young clusters to learn about their properties (e.g. mass, age) and/or search for companions orbiting them.
Dr. Mike Crenshaw
Extragalactic Astronomy
Dr. Mike Crenshaw studies the effects that active supermassive black holes in the centers of galaxies (often called active galactic nuclei or AGN) have on their hosts. His group focuses on outflows of ionized gas from AGN and their ability to remove potential star-forming gas, thereby controlling the growth of both the black hole and the galaxy. Potential student projects include imaging and/or spectroscopy of the emission-line regions in AGN using existing or new observations from the Hubble Space Telescope and/or the Apache Point Observatory (APO). Previous undergraduate students have traveled to the APO in New Mexico to obtain the observations, reduced the data, analyzed it, presented the results in AAS meetings, and co-authored papers in scientific journals.
Dr. Fabien Baron
Stellar Astronomy
Dr. Fabien Baron and his team are working on new algorithms and instruments to produce very high resolution astronomical images and movies using the Center for High Angular Resolution Astronomy (CHARA) Array, a GSU-owned interferometer composed of six 1m telescopes and located on Mt Wilson. CHARA currently provides the sharpest angular resolution of any observatory in the world in visible and near-infrared, enabling the imaging of stellar surfaces (spots, convection patterns) and stellar environments (faint companions, disks). As part of your REU project you will work on real data and produce never-seen-before images!
Dr. Sebastien Lepine
Stellar Astronomy
Prof. Lepine’s research team is a participant in the Milky Way Mapper (MWM) program, part of the ongoing Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS-V) now collecting data from observatories in the north and south hemispheres. The MWM program will be collecting spectra from hundreds of thousands of nearby stars within ~1,000 light years of the Sun. Our research interests range from analyzing these spectra to measure the chemical abundances in low-mass stars (K and M dwarfs), identify and study chromospherically active stars and binary systems, and measure the space motions of stars to determine their place of origin (young disk, old disk, halo, moving groups) in the Milky Way Galaxy.
Dr. Ramesh Mani
Nanosciences
The Nanoscience, Low Temperature and High Magnetic Field Laboratory located at the Natural Science Center serves to investigate the electronic properties of low dimensional systems at millikelvin temperatures, up to 14 Tesla magnetic fields, under microwave photoexcitation and dark conditions. Low dimensional systems under investigation include atomic layers of graphene, MoS2, WSe2, and GaAs/AlGaAs semiconductor heterostructures. Facilities are available to exfoliate and stack such atomic layer materials, and characterize the results by atomic force microscopy, scanning tunneling microscopy, and scanning electron microscopy. Electrical devices are fabricated by optical and electron beam lithography. Opportunities are available for students to participate in the exfoliation and stacking of 2D materials, device fabrication, and in device characterization by nanoscale imaging.
Dr. Mukesh Dhamala
NeuroPhysics
Dr. Dhamala’s laboratory at Georgia State uses neuroimaging (fMRI, EEG, iEEG, and other MRI-based) techniques and quantitative science approaches to investigate the neural basis of cognitive functions and their impairments in neurological and psychiatric disorders. The specific areas of current interest include: perceptual decision-making, human creativity, neural oscillations, large-scale network activities, Granger causality and other novel methods for brain data analysis, and modeling of time-delayed coupled oscillators. In the last five years, Dr. Dhamala’s NeuroPhysics Lab has trained about a dozen undergraduate students from diverse backgrounds in neuroscience and neurophysics research. The undergraduate students have conducted neuroimaging experiments, analyzed the behavioral and brain data, and some successfully helped turn their research work into peer-reviewed publications. Additionally, about 25 undergraduate students with diverse academic majors from various local institutions take Dr. Dhamala’s functional neuroimaging course every fall semester and participate in neuroimaging/neuroscience research review and brain data analysis training. An REU student recruited to work in the Dhamala NeuroPhysics Laboratory at Georgia State University will investigate the long-term effects of engaging tasks, like the video game playing, on brain sensorimotor decision-making processes. The project will involve (i) the re-analysis of already collected diffusion and functional MRI data from video-gamers and non-gamers, and (ii) designing a similar new experiment with sensorimotor decision-making tasks to collect some EEG data from participants undergoing training with video games. The findings from the EEG experiment are expected to go beyond the fMRI results and resolve the timings and features of neural oscillations in the subprocesses (sensation, perception, perceptual decision and motor action) of a sensorimotor decision-making process.
Dr. Unil Perera
Condensed Matter
Our research includes investigating Interactions of Radiation with Matter (IRML), especially with body fluids, and developing various types of IR detectors for a myriad of applications. Our present focus is on identifying IR spectral markers for disease induced changes within the constituents of body fluids that is relevant for the early detection of various health conditions. We have demonstrated this technique using serum samples of experimental mouse models of Ulcerative colitis (UC) and cancers and are inthe process of applying it to human serum (breast cancer and UC) samples. Aiding in early detection and diagnosis of disease with a cost-effective, simple way to enhance the compliance rate for disease screening could ultimately enhance society’s ability to combat debilitating and costly chronic diseases. Our ultimate goal is to develop a portable tool using a commercially available Fourier transform Infrared (FTIR) spectrometer with attenuated total reflectance (ATR) unit, integrated with the fully automated spectral measurements and analysis software package. Undergraduates have opportunities to work on any aspects of developing software, taking measurements, and data/statistical analysis involving the identification of spectral markers.
Dr. Justin H Robinson
Extragalactic Astronomy
Dr. Justin Robinson’s research includes distance measurement techniques to nearby galaxies, measuring supermassive black hole masses, and investigating relationships between supermassive black holes and the galaxies that host them. His research utilizes spectroscopy from multiple radio telescopes around the world in addition to spectroscopic and photometric data from various ground-based optical telescopes. Potential student projects would include modeling the variations in light generated from an active galactic nucleus (AGN) to constrain black hole masses and the environments around them, investigating distance measurements for galaxies hosting an AGN, or constructing new calibrations for distance measurements to spiral galaxies.
Dr. Viacheslav (Slava) Sadykov
Solar Physics
Viacheslav (Slava) Sadykov is an Assistant Professor at the Physics & Astronomy Department of GSU. He has wide research interests including the development and maintenance of databases of solar flares and flight radiation measurements, prediction of solar transient events using machine learning, machine learning-aided analysis of the spectroscopic observations of the Sun, modeling of solar spectral lines and EUV emission, and analysis of the realistic radiative MHD simulations of the quiet Sun. As a part of your REU project, you will be working with the observations of the Sun and learning how to use machine learning to enhance our knowledge of Heliophysics!
Dr. Idan Ginsburg
Stellar and Black Hole Astronomy
Dr. Ginsburg’s research focuses on astrobiology and dynamics, encompassing both theoretical and observational work. His students regularly use computational software, including N-body simulations, to analyze how life may originate and evolve in varied scenarios and circumstances. Other students are analyzing data from Gaia and TESS to understand the dynamics within our own Milky Way. Dr. Ginsburg’s work tends to be multidisciplinary, which is not only necessary, but exciting.
Dr. Jay Dunn
Extragalactic Astronomy
Dr. Jay Dunn and his team of undergraduate researchers investigate outflowing material emanating from the centers of active galaxies. His team explores these phenomena by analyzing absorption troughs in ultra-violet and optical spectra obtained from sources such as the Hubble Space Telescope and the Sloan Digital Sky Survey. The team seeks to help quantify the size, shape, composition, mass, and energy of the outflows. Many student projects involve large data sets and exploring thousands of active galaxy spectra.
CHARA Group
Dr. Gail Schaefer (California), Dr. Nic Scott (California), and Dr. Jeremy Jones (Atlanta)
Located less than 1 hour from Los Angeles, join the unique group of scientists and engineers that contribute to the cutting-edge science done at the world’s most powerful optical interferometer. Six one-meter aperture telescopes are spread across historic Mount Wilson Observatory and form the 331-meter CHARA Array. The CHARA Array presents a dynamic environment for education and practical work experience in astronomy as well as other projects across various disciplines and skills. Get training in a dynamic environment from on-site experts who regularly perform mechanical design, including CAD, drafting, and fabrication; electrical engineering, diagnostics, and circuit design; optical systems design, characterization, and alignment; and computer science, programming, real-time computing, including the C language and Python. There are opportunites for engineering and science students to learn new abilities and contribute to the mission of the Array. As the site is an operating observatory, CHARA interns get the chance to interact and work with scientists from around the world. For our internship program suitable applicants are paired with a mentor in their desired field. From there they will develop a project and also get cross-trained in other disciplines that are involved in a working observatory.
Nuclear Physics Group
Nuclear physics
Nuclear physics research at GSU includes instrumental, experimental, and theoretical investigations. Student can work on a broad list of topics, which includes, but is not limited to
1. sPHENIX experiment (link HERE): detector simulation, data analysis
2. Electron-Ion Collider: probing the inner structure of nucleon and nuclei (both in theory and in experimental studies); particle identification detector development (simulation and detector testing)
3. Cosmic ray radiation measurement and data analysis with broad applications (space/earth weather monitoring, public health and background radiation, muon/neutron tomography, etc.)
REU Mentors - Summer 2024
Dr. Misty Bentz
Extragalactic Astronomy
Dr. Misty Bentz studies nearby galaxies that host actively accreting black holes in their centers. Her research focuses on measuring the masses of the black holes and constraining the properties of the host galaxies, primarily using optical and near-IR imaging and spectroscopy from a variety of ground- and space-based telescopes. Potential student projects could include time domain analysis of repeated imaging or spectroscopy, two-dimensional fitting of high-resolution galaxy images, or modeling of light curves to constrain unresolvable structures using light echoes.
Dr. Todd Henry
Stellar Astronomy
The RECONS group studies nearby stars and their environments, with a focus on the K and M dwarfs that are less massive than our Sun but make up 86% of all stars in the Milky Way. RECONS carries out research using SMARTS telescopes in Chile (as well as many others) that are used to observe stars via imaging and spectroscopy, providing deep datasets from which many projects can be derived. For summer 2021, research projects would likely be focused on the companions to the K and M dwarfs — including other stars, brown dwarfs, and jovian planets — as well as the variability of the targeted stars.
Dr. Russel White
Stellar Astronomy
Dr. Russel White studies how stars form and how they change over their lifetime. He uses the observational techniques of spectroscopy and interferometry (with GSU’s CHARA Array) to measure star properties and constrain formation and evolution theories. By searching for gas giant planets around many of these same stars, he also investigates how and why some giant planets migrate and become ‘hot Jupiters’. A REU student that works with Dr. White would most likely analyze spectroscopic or interferometric observations of stars in young clusters to learn about their properties (e.g. mass, age) and/or search for companions orbiting them.
Dr. Ramesh Mani
Nanosciences
The Nanoscience, Low Temperature and High Magnetic Field Laboratory located at the Natural Science Center serves to investigate the electronic properties of low dimensional systems at millikelvin temperatures, up to 14 Tesla magnetic fields, under microwave photoexcitation and dark conditions. Low dimensional systems under investigation include atomic layers of graphene, MoS2, WSe2, and GaAs/AlGaAs semiconductor heterostructures. Facilities are available to exfoliate and stack such atomic layer materials, and characterize the results by atomic force microscopy, scanning tunneling microscopy, and scanning electron microscopy. Electrical devices are fabricated by optical and electron beam lithography. Opportunities are available for students to participate in the exfoliation and stacking of 2D materials, device fabrication, and in device characterization by nanoscale imaging.
Dr. Xiaochun He, Dr. Murad Sarsour, Dr. Megan Connors, Dr. Yang-Ting Chien
Nuclear Physics Group
Nuclear physics research at GSU includes instrumental, experimental, and theoretical investigations. Student can work on a broad list of topics, which includes, but is not limited to
1. sPHENIX experiment (link HERE): detector simulation, data analysis
2. Electron-Ion Collider: probing the inner structure of nucleon and nuclei (both in theory and in experimental studies); particle identification detector development (simulation and detector testing)
3. Cosmic ray radiation measurement and data analysis with broad applications (space/earth weather monitoring, public health and background radiation, muon/neutron tomography, etc.)
Dr. Mike Crenshaw
Extragalactic Astronomy
Dr. Mike Crenshaw studies the effects that active supermassive black holes in the centers of galaxies (often called active galactic nuclei or AGN) have on their hosts. His group focuses on outflows of ionized gas from AGN and their ability to remove potential star-forming gas, thereby controlling the growth of both the black hole and the galaxy. Potential student projects include imaging and/or spectroscopy of the emission-line regions in AGN using existing or new observations from the Hubble Space Telescope and/or the Apache Point Observatory (APO). Previous undergraduate students have traveled to the APO in New Mexico to obtain the observations, reduced the data, analyzed it, presented the results in AAS meetings, and co-authored papers in scientific journals.
Dr. Sebastien Lepine
Stellar Astronomy
Prof. Lepine’s research team is a participant in the Milky Way Mapper (MWM) program, part of the ongoing Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS-V) now collecting data from observatories in the north and south hemispheres. The MWM program will be collecting spectra from hundreds of thousands of nearby stars within ~1,000 light years of the Sun. Our research interests range from analyzing these spectra to measure the chemical abundances in low-mass stars (K and M dwarfs), identify and study chromospherically active stars and binary systems, and measure the space motions of stars to determine their place of origin (young disk, old disk, halo, moving groups) in the Milky Way Galaxy.
Dr. Fabien Baron
Stellar Astronomy
Dr. Fabien Baron and his team are working on new algorithms and instruments to produce very high resolution astronomical images and movies using the Center for High Angular Resolution Astronomy (CHARA) Array, a GSU-owned interferometer composed of six 1m telescopes and located on Mt Wilson. CHARA currently provides the sharpest angular resolution of any observatory in the world in visible and near-infrared, enabling the imaging of stellar surfaces (spots, convection patterns) and stellar environments (faint companions, disks). As part of your REU project you will work on real data and produce never-seen-before images!
Dr. Unil Perera
Condensed Matter
Our research includes investigating Interactions of Radiation with Matter (IRML), especially with body fluids, and developing various types of IR detectors for a myriad of applications. Our present focus is on identifying IR spectral markers for disease induced changes within the constituents of body fluids that is relevant for the early detection of various health conditions. We have demonstrated this technique using serum samples of experimental mouse models of Ulcerative colitis (UC) and cancers and are inthe process of applying it to human serum (breast cancer and UC) samples. Aiding in early detection and diagnosis of disease with a cost-effective, simple way to enhance the compliance rate for disease screening could ultimately enhance society’s ability to combat debilitating and costly chronic diseases. Our ultimate goal is to develop a portable tool using a commercially available Fourier transform Infrared (FTIR) spectrometer with attenuated total reflectance (ATR) unit, integrated with the fully automated spectral measurements and analysis software package. Undergraduates have opportunities to work on any aspects of developing software, taking measurements, and data/statistical analysis involving the identification of spectral markers.
Dr. Mukesh Dhamala
NeuroPhysics
Dr. Dhamala’s laboratory at Georgia State uses neuroimaging (fMRI, EEG, iEEG, and other MRI-based) techniques and quantitative science approaches to investigate the neural basis of cognitive functions and their impairments in neurological and psychiatric disorders. The specific areas of current interest include: perceptual decision-making, human creativity, neural oscillations, large-scale network activities, Granger causality and other novel methods for brain data analysis, and modeling of time-delayed coupled oscillators. In the last five years, Dr. Dhamala’s NeuroPhysics Lab has trained about a dozen undergraduate students from diverse backgrounds in neuroscience and neurophysics research. The undergraduate students have conducted neuroimaging experiments, analyzed the behavioral and brain data, and some successfully helped turn their research work into peer-reviewed publications. Additionally, about 25 undergraduate students with diverse academic majors from various local institutions take Dr. Dhamala’s functional neuroimaging course every fall semester and participate in neuroimaging/neuroscience research review and brain data analysis training. An REU student recruited to work in the Dhamala NeuroPhysics Laboratory at Georgia State University will investigate the long-term effects of engaging tasks, like the video game playing, on brain sensorimotor decision-making processes. The project will involve (i) the re-analysis of already collected diffusion and functional MRI data from video-gamers and non-gamers, and (ii) designing a similar new experiment with sensorimotor decision-making tasks to collect some EEG data from participants undergoing training with video games. The findings from the EEG experiment are expected to go beyond the fMRI results and resolve the timings and features of neural oscillations in the subprocesses (sensation, perception, perceptual decision and motor action) of a sensorimotor decision-making process.
Dr. Justin Robinson
Extragalactic Astronomy
Dr. Justin Robinson’s research includes distance measurement techniques to nearby galaxies, measuring supermassive black hole masses, and investigating relationships between supermassive black holes and the galaxies that host them. His research utilizes spectroscopy from multiple radio telescopes around the world in addition to spectroscopic and photometric data from various ground-based optical telescopes. Potential student projects would include modeling the variations in light generated from an active galactic nucleus (AGN) to constrain black hole masses and the environments around them, investigating distance measurements for galaxies hosting an AGN, or constructing new calibrations for distance measurements to spiral galaxies.
Dr. Viacheslav (Slava) Sadykov
Solar Physics
Viacheslav (Slava) Sadykov is an Assistant Professor at the Physics & Astronomy Department of GSU. He has wide research interests including the development and maintenance of databases of solar flares and flight radiation measurements, prediction of solar transient events using machine learning, machine learning-aided analysis of the spectroscopic observations of the Sun, modeling of solar spectral lines and EUV emission, and analysis of the realistic radiative MHD simulations of the quiet Sun. As a part of your REU project, you will be working with the observations of the Sun and learning how to use machine learning to enhance our knowledge of Heliophysics!
Dr. Idan Ginsburg
Stellar and Black Hole Astronomy
Dr. Ginsburg’s research focuses on astrobiology and dynamics, encompassing both theoretical and observational work. His students regularly use computational software, including N-body simulations, to analyze how life may originate and evolve in varied scenarios and circumstances. Other students are analyzing data from Gaia and TESS to understand the dynamics within our own Milky Way. Dr. Ginsburg’s work tends to be multidisciplinary, which is not only necessary, but exciting.
Dr. Jay Dunn
Extragalactic Astronomy
Dr. Jay Dunn and his team of undergraduate researchers investigate outflowing material emanating from the centers of active galaxies. His team explores these phenomena by analyzing absorption troughs in ultra-violet and optical spectra obtained from sources such as the Hubble Space Telescope and the Sloan Digital Sky Survey. The team seeks to help quantify the size, shape, composition, mass, and energy of the outflows. Many student projects involve large data sets and exploring thousands of active galaxy spectra.
Dr. Gail Schaefer (California), Dr. Nic Scott (California), and Dr. Jeremy Jones (Atlanta)
CHARA Group
Located less than 1 hour from Los Angeles, join the unique group of scientists and engineers that contribute to the cutting-edge science done at the world’s most powerful optical interferometer. Six one-meter aperture telescopes are spread across historic Mount Wilson Observatory and form the 331-meter CHARA Array. The CHARA Array presents a dynamic environment for education and practical work experience in astronomy as well as other projects across various disciplines and skills. Get training in a dynamic environment from on-site experts who regularly perform mechanical design, including CAD, drafting, and fabrication; electrical engineering, diagnostics, and circuit design; optical systems design, characterization, and alignment; and computer science, programming, real-time computing, including the C language and Python. There are opportunites for engineering and science students to learn new abilities and contribute to the mission of the Array. As the site is an operating observatory, CHARA interns get the chance to interact and work with scientists from around the world. For our internship program suitable applicants are paired with a mentor in their desired field. From there they will develop a project and also get cross-trained in other disciplines that are involved in a working observatory.